1. Field of the Invention
The present disclosure relates to manufacturing, and more particularly to additive manufacturing.
2. Description of Related Art
Laser based additive manufacturing (e.g. laser powder bed fusion, laser directed energy deposition) to form fully dense components has become a very valuable manufacturing technique that has allowed designers to design components not practical with traditional manufacturing techniques. Various metal systems can be processed using laser powder bed fusion (LBPF) process or sometimes referred to as laser sintering. However, in the case of highly reflective materials, the laser energy used to form the powder bed fusion may not be sufficiently absorbed by the material to fuse the successive layers together adequately. This has been an important limitation for certain applications of laser sintering, such as where high purity copper or aluminum components are needed, e.g., for electrical components or heat exchangers. Traditional techniques for additive manufacture of copper components involve reducing the purity of the copper alloy used in order to assure proper powder bed fusion.
Such methods have generally been considered satisfactory for their intended purpose, but the resultant electrical conductivity properties are very poor. However, there is still a need in the art for improved additive manufacturing techniques. The present disclosure provides a solution for this need